Defense Expert in Kohberger Case Claims Investigators Overlooked Critical Evidence, Advocates for Death Penalty

Sy Ray, a former Arizona homicide investigator and digital forensics expert, has called for the death penalty in the case of Bryan Kohberger, the 30-year-old former criminology PhD student who admitted to killing four University of Idaho students. Ray, who was hired as a defense expert witness before Kohberger pleaded guilty to avoid capital punishment, now argues that law enforcement missed significant evidence during their investigation.

Kohberger is currently serving four consecutive life sentences without parole for the November 2022 murders of Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20. Last week, Kohberger petitioned the court to withdraw his guilty plea and seek post-conviction relief, a move that could return the case to trial and reopen the possibility of a death sentence.

During an 82-minute podcast appearance hosted by journalist Brian Entin, Ray claimed that smartphone geolocation data from Kohberger’s Samsung device showed his location inside the victims’ residence prior to the murders. Ray stated he identified multiple data points with 25-meter accuracy that placed Kohberger in what he believed was the living room of the King Road home where the killings occurred.

Ray’s public statements directly contradict his own expert report filed January 23, 2025, in which he concluded that geolocation data “does not provide any evidence of association between Mr. Kohberger and any of the decedents and/or Mr. Kohberger’s or decedent’s residence.” The discrepancy has drawn scrutiny from other case analysts, including Morgan Wright, CEO of the National Center for Open and Unsolved Cases.

During the podcast, Ray suggested that Madison Mogen was Kohberger’s primary target based on phone location “collisions” placing them in the same general vicinity at a Pullman party and near an A&W store close to the crime scene. He also claimed evidence of stalking and a pattern of life suggesting Kohberger surveilled the residence before the murders—assertions that again contradict his written expert report.

Prosecutors have alleged that Kohberger visited the crime scene approximately a dozen times before the murders and at least once the morning after, but they have not publicly presented evidence of the phone location matches Ray described. Moscow Police investigators stated after Kohberger’s guilty plea that they could not determine who the intended target was or provide a motive for the crime.

Ray told Entin that investigators failed to adequately examine the geolocation evidence. He said he offered to conduct a debrief with the FBI but received no response. Ray expressed confidence that Kohberger would be convicted at trial if such evidence were presented to a jury, despite acknowledging the contradictions between his report and his recent public claims.

Kohberger’s petition for post-conviction relief asserts that he received ineffective assistance from his defense counsel. Ray suggested that the post-conviction filing may be part of a broader legal strategy by lead defense attorney Anne Taylor, despite the guilty plea agreement waiving most appeal rights. Ray warned that if Kohberger were ever released, “he will kill again.”